Our complementary experience, client base, culture and vision have seamlessly formed a single platform, one that expands the depth and efficiency of services we provide our clients. Stinson Leonard Street is a combination of two firms, similar in their values and approach to client service, but each with a unique history of founders and leaders who significantly shaped the legal and business landscape in their respective communities.

Our Storied History

Stinson Morrison Hecker LLP

Stinson Morrison Hecker LLP was formed on May 1, 2002, as a result of the combination of two large, established law firms based in Kansas City: Morrison & Hecker L.L.P. and Stinson, Mag & Fizzell, P.C.

Stinson, Mag & Fizzell was founded in 1878 by Frank Rozzelle. Rozzelle served as personal attorney for William Rockhill Nelson, founder of the Kansas City Star and benefactor of Kansas City's Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. The principal architect of the firm was Arthur Mag, who joined the firm in 1920. Arthur Mag served as Harry Truman’s personal lawyer and was prominent in local civic and international circles, and skillfully guided the firm through continued growth and several name changes until his death in 1981.

Morrison & Hecker, LLP was founded in 1909 by E.R. Morrison, who at one time had been an associate at the Rozzelle firm. The firm started with one associate, no clients and no business, but Mr. Morrison saw the need for a business law firm in the rapidly growing Midwest. Through perseverance and patience, his firm built a substantial client base. Over the years, Morrison & Hecker expanded to include offices in Johnson County, Kansas; Washington, D.C.; and Phoenix, Arizona.

Leonard, Street and Deinard

Leonard, Street and Deinard was founded in Minneapolis in 1922 by George Leonard, Arthur Street, and Amos and Benedict Deinard.

George Leonard, a Russian immigrant, arrived in Minneapolis in 1894; after 25 years of solo practice, he invited the Deinard brothers, who had just earned their law degrees from Harvard University, and Arthur Street, a noted legal writer and scholar with West Publishing Company, to join his practice. Together, they established the standards of excellence, scholarship and community involvement that would shape the firm for years to come.

George Leonard went on to become the architect of the Minnesota Farmer Labor Party and was twice offered a seat on the Minnesota Supreme Court. Arthur Street served as the legal editor of several trade journals and papers. Benedict Deinard was one of four civilians asked by the government to participate in the Nuremberg war crimes trials after World War II. Working in the Economic Section, Ben had a key role in the prosecution and conviction of Alfred Krupp, head of the powerful German munitions family that armed Germany for war. And, Amos Deinard was widely known for his years of persistent work to eliminate hiring discrimination. He was appointed to the Minneapolis Fair Employment Practices Commission in 1945 by Mayor Hubert H. Humphrey. Amos served on the Commission for 17 years, 15 of them as chairman.

Over the course of 90 years, the firm grew to more than 200 attorneys in five offices: Minneapolis, Mankato, St. Cloud, Minnesota; Bismarck, North Dakota; and Washington, D.C.